Lenovo Brings Back the Halo Keyboard, but Affordably So in the Yoga A12


We sure liked the Yoga Book when it came out last year. In fact, it pretty much wowed the entire tech world. You see, Lenovo is really good at giving the best of the best when it comes to innovative convertibles. The Yoga brand pretty much marked the ability to beautifully assume multiple form factors thanks to that tried and true hinge. Last year’s ultra-thin Windows 10 Home, or Android Marshmallow-running Yoga Books were a lot like previous Yoga iterations, especially in promoting that “watchband hinge” seen in the Yoga 3 Pro. Yet, there were significant differences in the Yoga Book. It featured a pressure-sensitive keyboard, called the “Create Pad”, which instead of typing on a mechanical keyboard, users had an active stylus, and a backlit, touch-sensitive floating “Halo Keyboard” that used haptic feedback to create a familiar sense of typing.

Enough about last year, it’s 2017, and Lenovo is back with the Yoga A12 convertible laptop. You guys, this is something to be excited about and here’s why: 1- the Yoga A12 is supposedly rocking many of the well-received design elements that the Yoga Book experienced since its release, and 2- the starting price point is ridiculously affordable, at just under $300. Beyond excitement, of course this means we are allowed to feel weary of what it could be missing for a price as low as that.

Remember that floating keyboard that looks so cool in photos? The A12 features the same touch-based Halo keyboard, also applying haptic feedback while you are typing (Lenovo also promises it will learn your typing habits as you use it), but unfortunately without the use of any sort of stylus pen. This is still an amazingly cool feature, considering you are working with a very futuristic looking display that is touch-based, and a floating virtual keyboard, using your fingers to work and navigate like you would on your smartphone. It features a 12.2-inch 1200 x 800 pixel display, and of course the Yoga kin tradition of a 360-degree rotating hinge to alternate from laptop to tablet, to tent mode, and so on. It’s powered by an Intel Atom x5 processor (a.k.a. Cherry Trail), comes with 2GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage.

The greatest hardware in the world? Not even close. This is an old, slower-running chip from Intel, one that the chip maker is actually phasing out right now. In regards to the software, the Lenovo Yoga A12 will run the Android 6.0.1 version, which should be nice and familiar to many. The screen resolution is also a disappointing one. So what we have here is a conglomerate of aging technology on a device that also has some truly futuristic features. And as far as the touch keyboard, those who are comfortable typing on their mobile devices should adapt well to this. Priced at $299.99, the Lenovo Yoga A12 is currently shipping to many countries.

Topics: Technology News Convergence & Convertible Hybrid PCs Laptop Trends Laptops & Ultrathin Ultrabooks Tech Reviews

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